Beginning on January 9, 1948 the new man in charge of the “Blue Angels” was LCdr. R.E. ‘Dusty’ Rhodes. At that time the team was flying four F8F Bearcats and one SNJ dubbed “Beetle Bomb” that was meant to represent a Japanese Zero. Originally the SNJ was painted with a large red meatball on the side of the fuselage and a large number zero on the tail. By 1948 the SNJ/Zero was painted bright yellow with USN markings. Three F8Fs would perform the maneuvers until the SNJ/Zero would attack the three Bearcats to begin a dogfight. At this point the forth F8F would join the group that would then split into two two-plane sections to pursue the SNJ/Zero. The Japanese pilot would always lose the fight ending in his aircraft hurdling towards the ground in smoke and a dummy thrown out to represent the pilot bailing out.

Designed as an entry for a 1937 USAAC "Basic Combat" aircraft competition, the T-6 was first flown on April 1, 1935. Several hundred T-6s were built before the advanced trainer designation, when it was modified for its role as a basic combat trainer. Nicknamed "the pilot maker," the Texan had low cantilever wings and a long two seat cockpit, with the engine mounted at the extreme forward. It trained thousands of USAF pilots through the 1950s and remained in service with some nations well into the 1990s. More than 15,000 T-6s were manufactured, and the aircraft remains a familiar air show presence, with 350+ airworthy examples still in existence.

Hobby Master's 1:72 scale T-6 Texan is constructed almost entirely from diecast metal, which gives the model a heavy feel. The large bird cage style canopy is removable for an unobstructed view of the pilot and co-pilot, pad printed instrument panels, control stick and seat. Engine details such as pushrod housing and cylinder head cooling fins can be seen inside the engine cowling. The solid metal wing features simulated landing lights, correctly replicated pitot tube and separately-applied aileron bell-crank levers. Releases in this series include an improved-visibility canopy with fewer frames and machine gun pods under each wing.